News

NEWS

KLEIN, Texas  The National Pro Fastpitch All-Stars rebounded from two straight defeats in Lowell, Mass. last Thursday (July 31), by earning a 5-0 victory over the Texas College Stars at Collins Field on Tuesday night.

The All-Stars from NPF were led by pitcher Amy Kyler (Cleveland State), who improved her season record to 10-4 with the win, and by designated player Tarrah Beyster (Oregon State) who had three hits in the ballgame, including a two RBI single in the fifth inning.

In the victory, Kyler struck out seven Texas College Star hitters, while walking only two and pitching her fifth shutout of the season. The seven strikeouts increased Kylers season total to 144 in just 94.2 innings pitched, an average of more than 1.5 strikeouts per inning.

Beyster led the offensive attack for the NPF All-Stars, going a perfect 3-for-3 in the ballgame including the two RBI single and her fourth double of the season. The three hit performance marked the second multi-hit game of the season for Beyster.

Other NPF Stars producing on offense were leftfielder Lauren Bauer (Arizona) and shortstop Lyndsey Klein (UCLA), both collecting two hits in the ballgame. Bauer would eventually come around to score both times she reached base by way of a hit. The two hits for Klein came in her first game of the season for her with the NPF team. Klein recently completed her obligations with the USA National Team and was picked up to fill the infield void left by Allison Andrade (Arizona) and Kara Brun (Arizona State), both of whom had to leave the team mid-season to fulfill academic obligations.

The NPF All-Stars, who have now won 16 of 22 games this summer, will play a rematch game Thursday, Aug. 7 at Imperial Park in Sugar Land, Texas, at 7 p.m. The game in Sugar Land is a part of the five days the All-Stars will spend in the Houston area. The originally scheduled game for Wednesday night in Katy, Texas has been cancelled, but the morning clinic will still take place.

In addition to posting a 16-6 record in games in California, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Colorado, Tennessee, Phoenix, Tucson, Akron, Lowell and Klein this season, the NPF All-Stars have hosted clinics and made appearances at Major League Baseball games in San Francisco, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Denver, Miami, Atlanta, Phoenix, Chicago, Cincinnati, Boston and Klein.

The Houston-area stop for the NPF All-Stars will also be in conjunction with the 11th annual Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) World Series. Hosted by the Houston Astros, the RBI World Series will be held August 6 -13, 2003 in Houston, TX. The RBI World Series is the championship round of the RBI program. The RBI preliminary rounds will be played at Baseball USA (2626 W. Sam Houston Parkway North, Houston, TX 77043) with the Boys Championships games being played at: Minute Maid Park.

RBI is a youth outreach program designed to promote interest in baseball, increase the self-esteem of disadvantaged children, and encourage kids to stay in school and off the streets. Managed by Major League Baseball in partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, RBI programs have been started in more than 185 cities worldwide, giving more than 120,000 boys and girls the opportunity to play baseball and softball annually. The Astros In Action Foundation has partnered the RBI program with the City of Houston Parks and Recreation Department to offer children in the Houston-area the opportunity to play organized baseball and softball in their communities.

National Pro Fastpitch is the only professional women's fastpitch softball league in the United States. Major League Baseball is the Official Development Partner of NPF. The league is headquartered in Denver, and has been in operation since 1997 under the names Women's Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women's Professional Softball League (WPSL).

The NPF All-Stars will play games two more games, one each Sugar Land and Pasadena August 7-8 while staging morning clinics at each site. In addition to the games and clinics, the NPF All-Stars will participate in a clinic before the Astros game August 9 at Minute Maid Park.

About Us

National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) is a growing professional sports platform for women in sport, specifically the sport of fastpitch softball. NPF currently exists as a rarity among professional team sports options for women. The league provides a place for fastpitch softball’s elite level players, to compete against each other. The NPF works to grow the game daily through individual team ownership, increased engagement with corporate America partners and expanded television coverage. The five current affiliate NPF teams are located in Akron, OH; Chicago, IL; Kansas City, MO; Vero Beach, FL and Viera, FL.